MUHYIDDIN Yassin will face a motion of confidence in the Dewan Rakyat sitting in September to clear all doubts on the support he has.
 
Muhyiddin announced this in a live television announcement today.
 
The Pagoh MP said he was summoned to meet the Yang di-Pertuan Agong at 11am today, and was told that eight Umno lawmakers had informed Dewan Rakyat that they had withdrawn support for the prime minister.
 
“In the meeting, I told the Agong that I have received a number of statutory declarations from MPs, and this has given me the confidence that I still have the majority support in Dewan Rakyat.
 
“I am nevertheless aware of the questions surrounding my legitimacy as prime minister. As such, I have told the Agong that a confidence motion will be tabled in Dewan Rakyat when Parliament meets in September,” said the Bersatu president.
 
He was surrounded by nine senior ministers during his announcement, including the deputy prime minister and Umno vice-president Ismail Sabri Yaakob.
 
He also said that until then, the cabinet will continue as usual.
 
“I apologise that we have to make this announcement at a time when the nation is facing a health crisis,” he said in his announcement.
 
This development comes as his parliamentary majority had been called into question following the pull-out of several Umno members from his administration yesterday.
 
Yesterday, Umno president Ahmad Zahid Hamidi said that there were a sufficient number of lawmakers from his party who had retracted their support for Muhyiddin.
 
Zahid added that as such, Muhyiddin should resign as he had lost the legitimacy to remain as the prime minister.
 
Zahid, flanked by 10 other Umno MPs in his press conference yesterday, said his party has presented evidence to the Agong to show which of its MPs have withdrawn support for Muhyiddin.
 
The 10 Umno MPs standing with him at the press conference were Najib Razak (Pekan), Tengku Razaleigh Hamzah (Gua Musang), Ahmad Maslan (Pontian), Azalina Othman Said (Pengerang), Noh Omar (Tanjong Karang), Mohd Nizar Zakaria (Parit), Azeez Abdul Rahim (Baling), Ahmad Nazlan Idris (Jerantut), Ahmad Jazlan Yaakub (Machang) and Ramli Mohd Nor (Cameron Highlands).
 
Following Umno’s announcement, Muhyiddin is believed to have just 104 MPs supporting him in the 220-MP Dewan Rakyat.
 
The 74-year-old became the nation’s eighth prime minister on March 1 last year following the fall of the Pakatan Harapan pact. – August 4, 2021.